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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25149250">First Prime: Transcript for Audiobook</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/DwaejiTokki/pseuds/DwaejiTokki'>DwaejiTokki</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Stargate Audiobook Transcripts [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Stargate SG-1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Audiobook, Gen, Official - Freeform, transcript</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 03:15:03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>8,901</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25149250</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/DwaejiTokki/pseuds/DwaejiTokki</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a transcript of an official Stargate audiobook. You can listen to it on Archive.org; use the search function to find Stargate Audio Books, or use this link: https://archive.org/details/008StargateImpressions/007-Stargate+-+First+Prime.mp3.</p><p>Note: It was brought to my attention that the above link does not work. You can search for it on YouTube as well, or use this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwOods_SViA&amp;t=6s. </p><p>This transcription was done by Samantha Pérez.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Stargate Audiobook Transcripts [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1821862</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>First Prime: Transcript for Audiobook</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>First Prime</strong>
</p><p>Christopher Judge as Teal’c narrating and impersonating most characters</p><p>            Noel Clarke as Sebe’t</p><p> </p><p>[Fire flickers] <em>In the Kelno'reem there is no self. It is a state of tranquility, a place that is no place, and in the realm where a warrior can seek his center. In the depths of the meditative state, the Jaffa know themselves. A synchrony is reached within the larval symbiotes we carry within us, our curse imposed upon us by the Goa'uld, but also the strength that makes us what we are. In the Kelno'reem, there is only knowing and the peace it brings. Here in this lodge, here on Chulak, I look for that peace, if only for a moment. The scent of the tallow and the candles, the texture of the furs beneath me, the distant wind across the hills. My senses guide me to my center, away from the war, the struggle. For a moment, far beyond the reach of the false gods, and here in this silence, the doors of recollection swing wide. I see faces. I feel the memories of my kindred. My father Ro'nac with my mother at his side, Master Bra'tac as he offers me his hand, beloved Drey'auc, and my son Rya'c. These and others I see, my friends among the Tau'ri, comrades long gone. In the Kelno'reem, the Jaffa knows his birthright. In the knowing he finds truth. In the past, he finds strength. The Kelno'reem is the path, and yet, I am troubled. The peace, the true balance of self and spirit, eludes me. At the edges of my thoughts, there is a darkness like a gathering storm. I reach for it, and it recedes. I turn away and it encroaches, but always, always beyond my grasp. I returned to my home world in search of answers, but they do not come to me. The shadows still fall, the peace is denied. In the Kelno'reem, there is no...no uncertainty. </em>[Door opens and footsteps]<em> The messenger was a boy, perhaps a year younger than the age of Prim'ta, and by the flush of color to his face, he had run the full distance from the village to find me. His words chilled my flesh like the night wind. The matters of my own concerns became of secondary importance. A signal had come through the Chappa'ai from Stargate Command. There had been an incident, an attack by the serpent guards of Apophis. Colonel O'Neill, Major Carter, Daniel Jackson. He had only to say their names, and I understood: the lives of SG-1 were in danger. </em></p><p>[Ominous music with heavy drums]</p><p>[Warp of the Stargate]</p><p>[Footsteps on metal ramp]</p><p>
  <em>General Hammond greeted me on my return to Earth, a man of strong will and quiet authority. His manner was one that Dr. Frasier had once described to me as fatherly. The concern etched upon his expression was just so. I admit I saw the mirror of my own disquiet there. The General understood what I would ask of him and wasted no time with preamble. </em>
</p><p><strong>General Hammond:</strong> Teal'c, I'm sorry to bring you back here, but I wanted to make sure you were safe. I was worried this might be some kind of concerted assault against all the members of SG-1.</p><p>[Closing warp of the Stargate]</p><p>
  <em>When I had embarked for a few days’ respite on Chulak, I had done so assuming that my absence would not be a detriment to the operations of the SGC. Both Daniel Jackson and Colonel O'Neill had gone to great lengths to assure me that was so. Their next mission would not require my presence, so they said. "A milk run," insisted O'Neill. It fell to Major Carter to clarify that the actual purpose of the excursion was a survey mission, and not, in fact, a sortie to recover lactic fluids. But here and now, listening to General Hammond's grave explanation, it appeared that the Colonel's casual appraisal had been incorrect.</em>
</p><p>[More ominous music]</p><p>~ ~ ~</p><p>
  <em>As usual, the General was direct and thorough. In the briefing room, he showed me images captured by a M.A.L.P. unit dispatched to a world beyond the known territory of the system lords. P5J-818 had a climate much warmer than that of Earth or Chulak, and it was characterized by a great belt of jungle about the equatorial region. It was here in this dense rain forest that the planet's Stargate was located. With great animation, Daniel Jackson had expressed his interest in studying a series of stone pillars recorded by the probe. </em>
</p><p><strong>General Hammond:</strong> Quite frankly, Teal'c, we're starting to think these pillars—Dr. Jackson described them as dolmans—were fakes, designed to lure in SG-1.</p><p>
  <em>I followed his reasoning. Daniel Jackson's quest for knowledge was well known among the Goa'uld. Certain artifacts would be a powerful bait one such as he. </em>
</p><p><strong>General Hammond:</strong> 818 was supposed to be a low threat environment. Seems we were wrong about that. Dead wrong. [M.A.L.P. recording turns on] The M.A.L.P caught this just as Colonel O'Neill IDC.</p><p>[Firing of guns, staff weapons, and zat'nik'tels] <em>I saw the familiar beaten steel of the armored suits, the cobra helmets, and ruby eyes. How could I not know them? I had fought for decades inside the very same war gear. The armor of the Serpent Guard Cadre sworn warriors in service of the System Lord Apophis. The tactics were also known to me. An ambush with a collapsing ring of advancing men designed to funnel an enemy toward the Chappa'ai for capture or execution. I knew it well, for I had used it often enough when I had been First Prime. I heard O'Neill call Major Carter's name. I saw her, glimpsed at the edge of the probe's view, moving and firing making for the Stargate. She was at the steps upon the pedestal only a handspan away. The blast struck her at an angle, the impact blowing her high as if she were a toy discarded by some petulant child. I watched the Major fall toward the ‘gate.</em></p><p>[Static of firing staff weapon]</p><p><strong>Teal'c:</strong> Where is she?</p><p>[Heart monitor beeping]</p><p>
  <em>The general informed me that Dr. Frasier and her staff had been in the operating theatre for several hours keeping Major Carter alive. She was in good hands, of that I was certain. Still, her face was bloodless and drawn. Life seemed to have only a loose hold upon her. For a brief moment, Frasier looked up and saw us in the observation gallery. Before she returned to her work, she gave me a nod. It was a promise to save the life of our mutual friend. </em>
</p><p><strong>General Hammond:</strong> We lost the wormhole for a few seconds after Major Carter came through. If she had been a heartbeat slower…</p><p>
  <em>And now my disquiet, my concern for the welfare of my comrades, was pushed aside by something else. Another emotion, dark and potent. I felt my hands contract into fists. Within the next moment—</em>
</p><p>[Alarm for incoming traveler]</p><p>
  <em>Unscheduled off-world activation. Those words have become a call to peril since I had joined the Tau'ri, but today I relished hearing them because I knew full well what they would signify. Answers. No IDC signal arrived. This was not my teammates making their escape. </em>
</p><p><strong>General Hammond:</strong> Close the iris!</p><p>[Steel against steel as the iris closes] <em>The holographic transmission shimmered into being on the embarkation ramp. A figure in elaborate golden armor and robes, carrying himself with the monstrous arrogance that only the Goa'uld are born with: Apophis.</em></p><p><strong>Apophis:</strong> Attention, insects. This is your God. I speak to the traitor, to the coward, Teal'c. Hear me, Shol'va.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I hear your words, you parasite.</p><p><strong>Apophis:</strong> You cannot escape the justice of the Goa'uld. You will pay in blood for a betrayal of your god. My legions have captured your Tau'ri allies. They will be taken to space and thrown from my ships.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I will not permit that.</p><p>
  <em>The system lord glared at me as if his hateful stare alone could cut me down. </em>
</p><p><strong>Apophis:</strong> You could do nothing to stop me, Shol'va, unless you wish to offer yourself to face my punishment in their place. These Tau'ri are a poor pitch. You, Teal'c, you are the prize. Come and face me, if you are not afraid.</p><p>[Closing warp of the Stargate]</p><p><strong>General Hammond:</strong> Don't even ask, Teal'c.</p><p><strong>Teal'c:</strong> With all due respect, General Hammond, you speak as if I have a choice in this matter. My friends are in danger. There is no question that I will go forth to rescue them. I am certain that were she well enough to join me, Major Carter would say the same.</p><p>
  <em>I understood the general's reticence. It was a trap. Set with all the characteristic bluntness and conceit of a system lord. Apophis had every intention of killing the Colonel and Dr. Jackson. I understood the general had commanders of his own to obey and rules to follow, that they were protocols to be adhered to. But I had rules of my own beyond any bonds of rank or nation-state. And so I spoke to him. The two of us alone, there in the briefing room, warrior to warrior. I told Hammond of my plan, and he allowed me a grim smile of approval. </em>
</p><p><strong>General Hammond:</strong> All right, Teal'c, I trust you. You have a go.</p><p>[Getting down to business music]</p><p>~ ~ ~</p><p>[Footsteps in the grass and birds chirping]</p><p>
  <em>It was certain that the ‘gate would be heavily guarded… </em>
</p><p>[Warp of the Stargate opening]</p><p><strong>Jaffa</strong>: Jaffa! Kree!</p><p>[Running through grass and staff weapons firing]</p><p>
  <em>…and so it would be an ideal distraction.</em>
</p><p>[Bombs exploding, Jaffa crying out in pain, rocket flying overhead]</p><p>
  <em>For all their prowess in battle, some Jaffa can be high bound by their orders and the inflexibility of their commanders. While the SGC deployed a rocket barrage through the ‘gate, I chose another route for my insertion: </em>
</p><p>[Transportation rings]</p><p>
  <em>…a captured Tel'tak cargo ship under the control of the Tok'ra. A landing would have been too risky. I was forced to leave the ship in midflight, but it provided me with the opportunity to use a Tau'ri device I've often seen deployed in combat. </em>
</p><p>[Parachute opening and landing]</p><p>
  <em>The drop was an exhilarating experience. The parachute's thermal coating prevented any detection of my descent. Once on the ground, I was ready to proceed. The Goa'uld way of warfare is not one of quiet and care. The system lords created their work cadre to be the Iron Fist of their rule, visible, hard to kill, destructive. Stealth was not typically a word in the Jaffa lexicon. In battle, a Goa'uld's first concern is victory, but his second is ensuring that the foe dies with his name on their lips. To fight a system lord's war was to fight the war of a braggart. But in fighting alongside the Tau'ri, I had learned much, in particular, something that O'Neill had simply called Black Ops. </em>
</p><p>[Grunts and breaking neck]</p><p>
  <em>The silent kill serves its purpose. </em>
</p><p>[Stealthy Music]</p><p><em>It was a simple task to find their camp. The golden pyramid of a Ha'tak mothership loomed high over the jungle, a collection of tents and canopies gathered around the landing site. My ploy appeared to have been a success. The encampment was poorly guarded by only a handful of men. Not enough to cover every approach.</em> [Footsteps through the grass] <em>It seemed that the bulk of the Serpent guards had deployed to the Stargate. </em>[Jungle birds chirping] <em>With luck, they would be scattered, attempting to regroup after the rocket attack. But my time was limited. I would need to move quickly. From the tree line, I studied the penance that flew from the standards about the camp. There were none of the ceremonial colors used by a system lord to announce his presence. Apophis was not here. The coward had not even the courage to come to 818 himself. He had sent his Jaffa to fight in his stead, as he always did. Clearly Apophis believe my capture would be a simple matter. I would disabuse him of that mistaken assumption.</em></p><p>[I'll show you who's boss music]</p><p><em>I penetrated the perimeter without incident and boarded the vessel. Colonel O'Neill and Dr. Jackson would most likely be confined on the dungeon deck several levels above. The interior of these craft were as well known to me as the faces of my wife and son. I had spent decades aboard such ships in transit to and from battles at the behest of the Goa'uld. </em>[Call of a Jaffa]<em> Serpent guard! Foolish. I allowed my attention to wander, my memories to cloud my focus. If the alarm was raised, my mission would be a failure before it had even begun. I attacked </em>[Jaffa cries in pain]<em> I tore the helmet from his armor, turned my knife to plunge into his neck and...</em></p><p><strong>Jaffa:</strong> Teal'c.</p><p><strong>Teal'c:</strong> Sebe't?</p><p>
  <em>I knew this man. He too was of Chulak. A youth from a village across the hills near where I'd grown up, taken to become Jaffa at the same age. We had both trained under the tutelage of Master Bra’tac. Sebe’t and I, we fought and bled for the same patches of ground in the wars between the system lords, against Bastet, Kronos, and others. I had thought him long dead. And now here we stood, blades drawn at each other's throats. I should have killed him. He served Apophis, and yet, I hesitated.</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> It is you? I knew it. I knew you would come to rescue the Tau'ri!</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Your master made a grave error in taking them.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> My master. But I [drops blade] I understand. You must kill me. I am your foe; that is the Jaffa way.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> What are you doing? What trick is this?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> No trick, Teal'c. Perhaps it is for the best. It is fitting you are the one to do this. Release me from my torment.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Torment?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Yes, the haze that has formed my thoughts, the conflict within me—doubts, the never-ending doubts!</p><p>
  <em>There was something in his eyes, a vulnerability I had never seen before.</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> When you defied Apophis, they named you traitor, Kinsman. He told us he would strike you dead, burn the world of the Tau'ri to ash, but…</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> He has done none of those things.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Just so, and four years, in four years our great God has been unable to kill one single Jaffa! And these Tau'ri, they are but men. He could not destroy them, either! I doubted him. Began to wonder, to question what…what if Teal'c were not shol'va? What if?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> What if Apophis is a false god?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Yes, yes, but until I saw you, saw you alive, I dared not believe it could be true.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I am living proof. The Goa'uld are parasites. Their tyranny is an affront to all our kind.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Then I renounce them. You may kill me now, Teal'c. I have said the words. I can die free.</p><p>
  <em>So that a man one would be proud to have at his side in battle, not without his flaws as always are, but still a friend, an honorable warrior. A thousand battles lay behind us both on worlds across all known space, in ice and fire, in mud and blood. Sebe’t had saved my life time and again, and I had done the same for him. His life was a parallel to mine. Tragedy cursed him and there were dark things, a secret he would never know, a burden I had willingly accepted as his friend, to confront him now in this place, and for his life to be at my dispatch. I confess, I did not know how to proceed. One voice within me called out to grant his demand to cut him down with a swift and painless stroke. But another voice one weighed down by regret: How many Jaffa had I killed since I shattered my chains of servitude? Every battle fought since that day on Chulak had been in one hope: to see my people freed from the yoke of the system lords. But how many of my Kindred had died by my hand? How many who might have wavered, who might have joined me, if only I had offered them the chance?</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> You may kill me now, Teal'c.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> No. I cannot. I will not take your life.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I do not understand. You are trusting me?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I believe I am. Join me, Sebe’t. We are not alone in our fight. Other Jaffa in other armies work against the Goa'uld. Some of us live free, great men are battle brothers.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Is it true that Bra’tac himself has joined your cause?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> It is so.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I would give much to see the Old Wolf again.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> You can. Come with me, Sebe’t.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> What must I do?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Colonel O'Neill and Dr. Jackson of SG-1. I am here for them.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Of course, the Tau'ri are in the dungeon decks at the apex of the fourth tier. The secondary corridors are unguarded but… A patrol! You must go quickly. I can draw attention away.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Very well. Do what you can and then meet me at the cells.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I will. [Chuckles] Look at us, Teal'c. Together once more as if no time has passed.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> There is much I wish to tell you, Kinsman.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Later. For now, go. Save your friends.</p><p>[Getting down to business music]</p><p>~ ~ ~</p><p>
  <em>Sebe’t did not lie. The serpent guards were few in number. With care I made my way swiftly to the holding area. There were many cells on the Ha'tak. Fortunate for me that I was able to locate the colonel and Dr. Jackson quickly. I could hear O'Neill yelling in the distance. </em>
</p><p><strong>Jack O’Neill:</strong> Hey, I ordered my latte an hour ago and I'm still waiting. This place has the worst room service ever.</p><p>
  <em> It was agreeable to see that Colonel O'Neill had lost none of his wit in this testing circumstance. There were two sentries. I dealt with them. </em>
</p><p>[Punches and falling dead weight] My arrival was apparently a timely one.</p><p><strong>Daniel Jackson:</strong> Teal'c! Wow, is it good to see you. I think they were getting bored. They were going to do something nasty to us if Jack didn't shut up.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> That would not have been likely.</p><p><strong>Jack O’Neill:</strong> What? Shutting up or them hurting us?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> The former.</p><p><strong>Jack O’Neill:</strong> Hey, I resent that! Now how about you bust us out of this pig pen?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I will endeavor to do so, Colonel.</p><p><strong>Daniel Jackson:</strong> Is Sam okay?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Major Carter is under Dr. Frasier’s expert care at the SGC. She is strong. [Opens metal cell door] She will make a full recovery.</p><p>
  <em>Daniel Jackson explained that SG-1 were attacked soon after they had stepped through the Stargate. It seemed that General Hammond's suggestion that the Dolman stones were a lure was correct. The ambush was not a chance event, but a carefully planned trap. Colonel O’Neill was in agreement. It was likely that Apophis had deployed his troops on 818 several weeks earlier to wait for the eventual arrival of SG-1. The fact that I had not been with him was in O'Neill's words, “a solid gold lucky break.” If I had not been on Chulak, Apophis would have had his prize, and perhaps all of us would be dead. Although I doubted that Apophis would simply kill me. He wished the most visible, most demeaning death imaginable for one who had shamed him. I outlined the tactical situation. By now the serpent guards not neutralized by the rocket attack would be completing their sweeps of the jungle and moving back toward the encampment. We would need to move promptly and lay down heavy fire in order to break through their lines. But with the assistance of Sebe’t, I believed our chances of reaching the Stargate were good.</em>
</p><p><strong>Jack O’Neill:</strong> Seb-who? What are you talking about, Teal'c? Another Jaffa?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Teal'c.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Here. Quickly, Sebe’t. We have little time.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> It would seem so.</p><p>
  <em>I have known victory and defeat in equal measure. It is my pride to say I have faced them both unflinching, but betrayal…It is not a thing I can accept with stark defiance, the anger it brings in me is a fury unlike any other. Colonel O'Neill called the warning.</em>
</p><p><strong>Jack O’Neill:</strong> Sebe’t! Sebe’t was the Jaffa who had led the ambush against SG-1!</p><p>
  <em>It was his staff weapon that struck Major Samantha Carter, this man I had known and called brother. This man I had trusted once before. And now today, in error, he had betrayed me.</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> You are a weak and sentimental fool, Teal'c. [Firing staff weapon]</p><p>
  <em>Blackness clouded me. I slipped away, a single word following me into the dark.</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Shol’va! Shol’va! Shol’va! Shol’va! Shol’va!!!</p><p>~ ~ ~</p><p>[Enters a dream]</p><p>
  <em>This place. I know it. A battle.</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Kinsman. What are you doing loitering in here? Outside is glory to be won in the name of Apophis.</p><p>
  <em>Glory.</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> And more! The Lord Kronos has overextended his lands across the iron fields. The second ar'kay squadron has been diverted from the marshland front! We can cut them down in a single stroke! Ha ha!</p><p>
  <em>Kronos. This is the battle for Garuda Five, long before I was First Prime. </em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> First Prime? You're getting ahead of yourself, Teal'c. You have a long road to travel before our God gives you the golden brand.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Yes. Yes. How goes the fighting?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Our enemy has all the courage of a Setesh dog. They'll be broken by nightfall, and we will return to as heroes. Mark my words.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> What does Master Bra’tac say of your optimistic predictions?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Ah, you know the Old Wolf; cautious as ever. He would be dower even if the sun shone only for him.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> His counsel is wise.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> But my staff is swift. Strength first, Teal'c, and wisdom will come soon enough.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> You have yet to match my record in combat, Kinsman. Perhaps you may crow when you have done that.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Oh, I will crow! Do not doubt it. I will crow loud enough for you to hear when the lovely Li’tel showers me with kisses upon my return.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> She is fickle. I warn you.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> You are just jealous she did not choose you, Teal'c. But be cheerful. With our God's blessing you will find a wife soon enough and when Apophis names me First Prime, you can be my second.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Do not be so quick to seek glory from him, Sebe’t. War can bring sorrow as quickly as triumph.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> You speak like an old woman.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> We…we are not in competition, Kinsman. You do not have to beat me to remain my friend, my friend.</p><p><em>A dream. A memory. Sometimes, the moment is so vivid, it is difficult to be certain. I glanced around at my surroundings. The interior of a Tel'tak, the cargo compartment. I was alone, sealed within. My weapons and equipment torn for me. Strange that there were no chains about my wrists and ankles. Of Colonel O’Neill or Daniel Jackson there was no sign. Where was I being taken? The ship's flight was uneven. We were traveling inside the atmosphere of a planet, not in space then, not on my way to Apophis. But why? "Shol'va." My skull was tight with the echo of the zat’nik’tel blast and something. Something felt different. As if there were a great pressure upon my mind, like the sense of a distant storm far across the horizon. There at my temple, something attached to the flesh, a device, a metallic half-sphere. </em>[Electricity zap and ominous music]<em> What deception was this? The ship halted. Whatever Apophis had planned for me, I knew it would not be long in revealing itself. </em>[Elevator rings arrive and ship departs]<em> Not far then. I was deposited upon a ruined stone structure elsewhere on 818. From my vantage point, I could make out the tip of the Ha'tak, emerging from the jungle canopy several miles away. By the height of the twin suns in the sky, it was clear I had been unconscious for no more than a few hours. The air was warm and thick with the scent of plants, the cries of animals. I needed my breath, listening, sensing.</em></p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> Well, Teal'c. Are you going to hide all day among the rocks like a frightened child?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>A staff weapon lay at the foot of the structure like a battle offering.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> Take it. It isn't a trap. You have my word.</em>
</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Your word means little to me. Show yourself if you have the courage.</p><p>[Ruffling branches]</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I am here.</p><p>[Footsteps on grass]</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> You have made a grave mistake.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I think not.</p><p>
  <em>He reached to his forehead and pulled out the flesh. The black serpent tattoo there came away in his fingers. Beneath it was revealed a bone-deep marking in dark, heavy gold. The twin to the brand upon my brow.</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I am Sebe’t, First Prime of Apophis, and you are my quarry.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> You took my place.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>A rank you never deserved! Fitting that I hold that honor now. I will cleanse the taint you left upon it with your blood.</p><p>[Deep and filling laughter from Teal'c]</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Do not mock me! You are Shol'va!</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I am no traitor. I have betrayed nothing: only a false god skulking within flesh not his own, a serpent I would crush beneath my boot.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Apophis is your god, and by his command, it is my great glory to be the instrument that will end your disloyal existence.</p><p>[Arms staff weapon]</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I am reminded of a maxim spoken by the Tau'ri: You and what army?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I am alone, Teal'c. I have never needed help to best you.</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>And yet I was made First Prime. Not you.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Apophis. He did that to test my faith and to allow you to reveal your weakness.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I have no doubt he said it to be so. Why not kill me, then? You had the chance before with your lies and your traps.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> It is not enough that you simply die. You must be seen to be beaten and humiliated, as all traitors deserve. You will become an object lesson, Teal'c. A reminder that the will of the Goa'uld can never be defied by a mere Jaffa. I challenge you to mal'ska’tae.</p><p>
  <em>Single combat to the death. </em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>You have no choice but to accept.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I refuse. I will not be entertainment for your master. Where is he now, Sebe’t? Across the galaxy hiding behind his throne, too afraid to face me himself? I, a mere Jaffa?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I am his will made manifest. He works through me.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> You are fodder for his cannon, as are we all to the Goa'uld. Tools, Kinsman, for them to use and discard as they see fit.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>They are gods. They do us honor by gracing our lives with their brilliance.</p><p>
  <em>I searched his eyes for a fraction of the man I once knew. The man I thought I had seen with my knife to his throat. I did not find him. Sebe’t was closed to me, my entreaties falling upon an iron will. For an instant I felt saddened. I hoped that he might be able to see the path to freedom as clearly as I once did. It flickered and died inside me as a candle doused by sand.</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Lord Apophis expected you to show such cowardice. Must I tell you of what fate the Tau'ri prisoners will suffer if you do not take mal'ska’tae.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Do not pretend you will release them if I consent. I am not a fool.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Of course not. They will die. But there are ways of dying, and then there are quicker ways. What say you?</p><p>
  <em>I gave him my answer. </em>
</p><p>[Charging into combat, staff weapons clashing, and Sebe’t grunting]</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>You're slower than I remember, Teal'c. Or is it that I'm faster?</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>You only wish that were so.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Has the frailty of the Tau'ri tainted you? But then you were always weak within.</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>Your taunts are as clumsy as your defense.</p><p>[Sebe’t yelps in pain]</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>If that is the best you can do, then this will be over before it begins. At least try to give me some sport before I finish you.</p><p><em>We stalked each other as wolves will circle prey. His arrogance masked his fear. I could smell it on him. Sebe’t was a deadly foe, of that I had no doubt. But he was afraid of me, of Apophis, and more than that, of the one thing all Jaffa fear most: failure. This was the root of the Goa'uld's rule over the hearts of men. They did not appeal to the best of my kind. They struck out the worst of us, stoking our terrors and superstitions. I saw the chink in his armor and pressed to it</em>.</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>How can you expect to beat me? I have always been the better warrior.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Perhaps once, but not now.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Nothing has changed! I will win this fight, and you will have thrown away a chance for redemption.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>I admit you do have great prowess, but your pride blinds you, the mighty Teal'c, the Jaffa who defied a God! You think you're invincible? How wrong you are.</p><p>[Electricity]</p><p>[Teal'c grunts in pain]</p><p>
  <em>The implant device. </em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Apophis has granted me a gift to ensure that you suffer the traitor's fate. Do you see? Can you feel it?</p><p>
  <em>Sebe’t turned his head to reveal an orb, similar dimensions to the one fixed to my flesh there upon his brow.</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>An Altir. Perhaps you have heard of them.</p><p>
  <em>I had. The Altir were devices used by the system lords in their gladiatorial arenas to make combats more…interesting. The orbs were fixed in the skulls of their warriors. Each generated an artificial link from the mind of one to the other. An implanted fighter trained in their use could sense the surface thoughts of a similarly implanted opponent. A cold shock of understanding shot through me.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t: </em>
  </strong>
  <em>Yes, Teal'c. I sense you. I will know every move you make before you are aware of it. I will counter every attack and it is you who would fall. My Lord Apophis will have these prizes, and you will be broken for all to see!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>He moved like lightning. </em>
</p><p>[Rapid strokes with sword]</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t: </em>
  </strong>
  <em>Not so clumsy now, am I!?</em>
</p><p>[Teal'c grunts in pain from electric shock]</p><p>
  <em>So very fast. Every blow I placed he faded from it. He was smoke, always beyond me, each attack parried. He pushed me back, gaining ground. I could not react quickly enough. It was as if I were fighting my own shadow. </em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>What is this? Are you already tired?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> If you wish to fight me, then we will fight on equal terms.</p><p>
  <em>I reached for the implant.</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>A mistake. The Altir will kill you if you try to remove it by force. [Teal’c grunts in pain] I warned you. Only on the death of an opponent can the combatant remove the orb.</p><p>
  <em>I threw a strike to his…</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>A strike to my head! A miss. How predictable. My turn. [Rapid blows with staff weapons]</p><p>
  <em>Fast! He was so fast. I could only defend. He gave me no path of attack.</em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Perhaps Apophis will let you die on your feet if you submit now!</p><p>
  <em>The combat pressed us from the jungle to a high precipice above raging falls. </em>
</p><p>[Flowing river]</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Enough retreat, Shol'va. You have nowhere to go. You may beg for your life if you wish it.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> What I wish is to deny you any victory. AHHHHHH!</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>NO!</p><p>
  <em>And once more I was falling, falling.</em>
</p><p>[Raging river grows louder]</p><p>[Dramatic music]</p><p>
  <em>~ ~ ~ </em>
</p><p>[Gentle flowing water and insects]<em> A few miles downstream from the waterfall, I circled back to the river bank. Night was quickly falling and the small moon was low in the sky, casting little light. My injuries were many. I tasted blood and felt raises across my chest from fractured bones, but I could heal. The Goa'uld symbiote inside me would accelerate my recovery into a matter of hours. I needed only to find somewhere isolated. A bolt hole. Somewhere I could…</em></p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t: </em>
  </strong>
  <em>Teeeaaal'c.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>His voice was distant, as if carried by the winds. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong><em>Sebe’t:</em> </strong>
  <em>I know you still live. That was a daring tactic. I admit I did not think you capable of taking such a risk. [Chuckles] But then the fear of certain death does drive men to extremes.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I willed my turbulent thoughts into silence.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t: </em>
  </strong>
  <em>Will you not speak to me, Kinsman? No? Is it that you are ashamed of fleeing? Have you truly lost your resolve? Will you not step forward and face me like a Jaffa!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I have never turned my face from a challenge, but a warrior knows when to fight and when to wait. I knew in that moment that I would perish if I faced Sebe’t again, and with my death would come the executions of Daniel Jackson and Colonel O'Neill. That was something I could not permit.</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t: </em>
  </strong>
  <em>How sad. The mighty Teal'c rendered toothless. Shown as a coward; such a pity.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I closed my mind to his taunt and looked inward. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong><em>Sebe’t:</em> </strong>
  <em>Teal'c!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>It will take more than strength alone to defeat him. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong><em>Sebe’t:</em> </strong>
  <em>Teeeeal'c! [voice fading]</em>
</p><p>
  <em> I reached within myself for peace, for the focus of the Kelno'reem.</em>
</p><p>[Peaceful music]</p><p>~ ~ ~</p><p>
  <em>The Kelno'reem. </em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Kinsman!</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>Sebe’t. This is Chulak, the Palace of Apophis, and I am First Prime.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Of course, you are! Is something troubling you, my friend?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I…Yes. I sought a moment of clarity in the Kelno'reem, but it escaped me.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Clarity? About what? We are Jaffa! We have little to doubt! We only do.</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>Yes, but in recent months I have…questioned.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Teal'c, I admit I have seen a change in you. After you returned from the world of the Tau’ri, and then again when you bought the tribute from Abydos.</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>Tribute? A fine name for slaves, a crop of poor fools whose only mistake was to be born under the sight of Apophis. Now they will be chosen to become hosts for the Goa'uld, or they will be put to death, and it is we who will be ordered to execute them.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>It is the way of things. It is the will of the gods that the people die so the chosen can live.</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>Even innocence?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>If Apophis wishes it so, then yes. We are not fit to question their divine—</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>And what of your wife, Li’tel? Was she not innocent? Did you not question her death?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>Why, it is heresy to say these things, Teal'c. What is wrong with you, you are First Prime, you are the right hand of our god!</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>Am I?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>I will hear no more of this. I have come to you with a summons from our Lord Apophis himself. He wishes to proceed with the selection of the new hosts immediately. You are to gather the squad of Jaffa and accompany him to the dungeon.</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>And the others? The intruders?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t: </strong>The two men and the female? I would imagine their lives will be forfeit. Apophis has little mercy for those who invade his realm…or those who defy him. You would do well to remember that, Kinsman.</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>I have no choice.</p><p>
  <em>No choice, no choice. The small cabin above the river afforded me good shelter, and the thickness of the rocks attenuated the power of the Altir link or perhaps it was the depths of my meditation. I found what I had sought, clarity of purpose. Seeing Sebe’t's face in the past brought me a measure of understanding. Even then, before I had made the decision to change my life to rescue O'Neill and SG-1, to save the people from Abydos, the path of my future was being laid down before me. I had not seen it at the time, but now it was clear to me. Sebe’t and I had always been upon a collision course from the very beginning. Perhaps the confrontation here was the end of that path. Two men, two lives in parallel, destined to intersect. And despite the hatred and enmity he had for me, I found I could not return it. When I looked into my heart, I could find only sadness, only pity for my kinsman. That and the truth that I had been sworn to keep from him, but the time for that truth to see the light was coming closer with every breath.</em>
</p><p>[Ominous music]</p><p> ~ ~ ~</p><p>[Noises of jungle birds and insects]</p><p>
  <em>Dawn drew a band of color against the canopy of trees. Soon the night’s shield would vanish as the suns rose. In the silence I waited listening for Sebe’t’s voice. I could sense the edges of his fury through the link. It was a crimson cloud at the horizon of my thoughts. His emotions were raging, but I was prepared, the healing trance of the Kelno’reem bringing me strength once more, and with that came something else: a moment of self-knowledge. Sebe’t had called me prideful. He was correct. I had assumed that I would be able to defeat him with ease. I had been proven wrong. I remembered the words of my mentor Bra’tac. The warrior who underestimates his foe does not often live to tell of it. It was an error I would not make again. </em>
</p><p>[More ominous music]</p><p>~ ~ ~</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> Teal’c, I know you hear me.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>…In the Kelno’reem, there is no self. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> Mind tricks won’t stop me from finding you, Shol’va. I can see the color of your thoughts. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>…In the Kelno’reem there is only knowing and the peace it brings. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> Bra’tac taught you well. Of that there is no doubt, but he also taught me. I know the ways just as well as you do. I see through you. You are glass. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>…In the Kelno’reem the Jaffa knows his birthright. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> Ah, you betray yourself. Your memories are like waves upon a lake, echoes in a cavern. I see them. Hear them. The battle on Garula Five, yes, and the Palace of Apophis on Chulak. I see them. I see you.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>…In the knowing, he finds truth. In the past, he finds strength. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> You can’t shut me out forever, coward! You cannot escape. I will find you. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>…The Kelno’reem is the path. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> I am the will of your god. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>…In the Kelno’reem, there is no uncertainty. </em>
</p><p>[Lots of ominous music]</p><p>~ ~ ~</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> [Whispering] Teal’c. [Footsteps on the jungle floor] Teal’c? Ah, Teal’c! The Kelno’reem! You cannot hide there forever, traitor! I will find you! Jaffa! Kree! Spread out and search the jungle! Tear up every tree if you must, but find me the Shol’va, Teal’c! [Jaffa footsteps running on jungle floor] No one kills him but me!</p><p>[Suspenseful music]</p><p>~ ~ ~</p><p>[Many footsteps on grass]<em> I became a ghost. Sebe’t’s promise of the mal’ska’tae was little more than another falsehood. By the ancient codes, the fight was to be fought between two challengers. The squads of Jaffa sweeping the area with weapons drawn put the lie to that. I had expected—I had hoped that some of my old friend’s honor still remained intact. It appeared that was not so. A serpent guard passed within a hand’s span of where I waited. A single motion. A savage strike. I could take his life with a twist of the neck and he could perish, never knowing the face of his killer. </em>[Jaffa footsteps through grass pause and continue] <em>I did not. I told myself it was a tactical choice so no alarm would be raised. But still, I could not help but recall the sights I had been forced to witness from the behind the eyes of the same snakehead helm and the deeds I had done in that armor. I moved on. Behind the lines of Sebe’t’s warriors back toward the mothership. </em>[Teal’c stalking through the grass]</p><p>[Sneaky music]</p><p>
  <em> Sebe’t had learned poorly from Bra’tac. Clearly his intention to capture me had robbed him of his focus. The Hat’tak was open to infiltration and what defenses there were…</em>
</p><p><strong>Jaffa:</strong> Hey! [Arms staff weapons]</p><p>
  <em>…I did not allow my resolve to waver.</em>
</p><p>[Firing staff weapons]</p><p>
  <em>Sebe’t had not remove the prisoners from their cells. He believed they would be secure. As I said before: arrogant and high-bound. </em>
</p><p>[Stealth music]</p><p>
  <em>I wasted no time.</em>
</p><p><strong>Daniel Jackson:</strong> Teal’c! Huh. Déjà vu.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Stand back!</p><p>[Firing staff weapon]</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> We go, now!</p><p><strong>Jack O’Neill:</strong> Just you this time, T? Nobody from the good old days?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> No!</p><p><strong>Jack O’Neill:</strong> I’m just saying, ‘cause I don’t want to go through all this a third time.</p><p>
  <em>I did not have the opportunity to reply to the colonel’s comment. In retrospect, that may have been for the better. </em>
</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Guards! Quickly take these weapons!</p><p>[Many staff weapons and zat’nik’tels strike]</p><p>
  <em>The alarms have been raised. I had no doubt that Sebe’t was returning to the Ha’tak as fast as he could.</em>
</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Colonel O’Neill, Daniel Jackson, this way! Follow me!</p><p>
  <em>Our exfiltration from the ship was rapid and not without difficulty, but we were not unfamiliar of such circumstances. To aid our escape, I rendered severe damage to the Ha’tak with the careful placement of concussion detonators liberated from the armory.</em>
</p><p>[Explosions]</p><p>
  <em>We left the forces of Apophis in disarray and made our escape. </em>
</p><p>[Funky escape music]</p><p>[The trio running to the Stargate]</p><p>
  <em>O’Neill chose the most efficient method of neutralizing the guards protecting the Chappa’ai. </em>
</p><p><strong>Jack O’Neill:</strong> Hey guys, got something for ya. Catch!</p><p>[Beaming object]</p><p>
  <em>The shock grenade made short work of them. </em>
</p><p>[Jack activates the Stargate]</p><p><strong>Daniel Jackson:</strong> Uh, Teal’c? I don’t want to alarm you, but you know you have a steel semisphere attached to your head, right?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I am well aware.</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> Can’t run from me!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Daniel Jackson knew of the Altir. He warned me about the power of the implants. Even if Sebe’t were defeated, there was a chance the device would still kill me. </em>
</p><p>[Opening warp of the Stargate]</p><p><strong>Jack O’Neill:</strong> Forget that guy. Soon as we get home, I’m getting Hammond to send a fuse missile love letter to finish off these bozos. Go, Daniel, we are right behind you.</p><p>[Warp of Daniel entering the event horizon]</p><p>
  <em>I hesitated before the eerie glow of the wormhole, and O’Neill turned. He saw the expression upon my face.</em>
</p><p><strong>Jack O’Neill:</strong> Teal’c?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Do not concern yourself, Colonel. I will be along, momentarily.</p><p>[Warp of Jack entering the event horizon]</p><p>
  <em>I knew the colonel would not consider this a wise course of action, but I deemed it a necessary one. </em>
</p><p>[Wormhole closing]</p><p>
  <em>Once he was through the wormhole, I deactivated the Stargate removing the control crystal to prevent it reopening. There was unfinished business here. A battle to be concluded. </em>
</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Sebe’t!</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> Teal’c.</em>
</p><p><strong>Teal’c: </strong>Show your face, if you dare!</p><p>[Footsteps through the grass]</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> No need to shout, Kinsman. Here I am.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Then we will end this now!</p><p>[Grunting, blows from combat, energetic music with heavy drums]</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I will kill you!</p><p>
  <em>His rage was towering. It fueled him up even as they consumed him. I knew that this fight would test me to my limits. </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> YOU CANNOT WIN!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Before, without the meditation, the advantage was his, but now I had equaled the odds. </em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I HAVE ALWAYS HATED YOU!</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> You speak with the words of Apophis, not your own. We were brothers in arms, friends.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> You are a liar, a traitor! My god showed me the truth! AAAAHHHHH!!!</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Apophis is the liar! He is no god!</p><p>
  <em>I raised my hand in a killing blow and hesitated. I tried to reach him, the man who had been my friend, one final time. I owed him that. I owed him the truth. </em>
</p><p>[Drums stop and scene fills with jungle sounds]</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Renounce the Goa’uld. Turn away from them and join me in freedom!</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I WILL NOT! APOPHIS IS MY SAVIOR! IT IS HE WHO GAVE ME THE RANK OF FIRST PRIME! [Panting] AFTER YOU BETRAYED AND DESERTED US, HE WHO GAVE ME SUCCOR WHILE MY WIFE PERISHED, NOT YOU!</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Li’tel.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Yes!</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Apophis told you her death was an accident.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> She fell from the great bridge while I was off-world in battle.</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> She did not. I was there.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Another lie!</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> No. I found her. She stood atop the stones, facing the sunset. She was weeping.</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Teal’c:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> Li’tel, come dow! You will fall!</em>
</p><p>
  <em>[Li’tel crying] </em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I see…but…no...no. That is…</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> I face you unarmed, Kinsman, and I will show you. Use the Altir. Look into my thoughts. See my memories.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> No…no…</p><p>
  <em>I found Li’tel on the bridge. She wept bitter tears. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>[Li’tel weeping]</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Teal’c:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> Li’tel, come down. You will fall.</em>
</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Her death was no accident.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> She took her own life, but why?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Because she was ashamed. While you were away at war for your god, Apophis chose to take her for his amusement. She did not please him, and he discarded her. She could not bear to live with her honor so tainted.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> Li’tel, NO.</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Li’tel:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> AAHHHH </em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> [whispering] No!</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> It is my disgrace that I kept this truth from you.</p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Apophis:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> Jaffa, it is my decree that you will not speak of this to any other. The loyalty of Sebe’t to his god is more important than any bond of family. </em>
</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> So Apophis commanded, and as First Prime, I obeyed him.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> This is so?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> This is this is a secret truth I was forced to keep. I ask you, Sebe’t, what kind of god would do such a thing to one so loyal to him?</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> No…No, I deny it. [Sebe’t crying] Li’tel! My beloved!</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Forgive me, Kinsman. I should have defied Apophis on that day and refused to carry his lies.</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> No! No, Teal’c! I…lies! Lies, my god lied to me! [Continued sobbing] My loyalty is nothing but sad, worthless, wasted! APOPHI  S, I DECRY YOU! I WILL SEE YOU DAMNED FOR THIS! DAMNED! [Electricity and Sebe’t screaming]</p><p>
  <em>The Altir. Perhaps the Goa’uld were observing through the device, or perhaps it had been programmed to defend against disloyalty. Sebe’t fell to his knees as the implant wracked with agony. </em>
</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> [Sebe’t breathing hard] Teal’c…I go to her now, Kinsman. I go to my Li’tel. [Electricity] Ugh. [Falls to the ground]</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Sebe’t!</p><p><strong>Sebe’t:</strong> I am Jaffa. [Heavy breathing] I die free, Brother. Ugh….</p><p>
  <em>I could feel Apophis reaching out across the distance, ready to crush the life from me as he had my kinsman. I would not allow it. </em>
</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> AAHHH [Teal’c removes the implant from his head]</p><p>
  <em>Too many Jaffa had died today. </em>
</p><p>[Sad ending music]</p><p>[Warp of the Stargate and Teal’c’s footsteps on metal ramp]</p><p><em>Colonel O’Neill awaited my return. Behind him, up in the control room, I saw Major Carter standing alongside Daniel Jackson and General Hammond. My spirits lifted to see her well once more and my friends safe and secure.</em> [Closing warp of the stargate] <em>But still, the dark mood that had shrouded me before I set off for Chulak remained close by. The questions. The battles I had fought and ones still to fight preyed upon me. The war against the Goa’uld was not yet won, and in the conflicts ahead there would be more lives lost. Jaffa lives.</em></p><p>
  <strong>
    <em>Sebe’t:</em>
  </strong>
  <em> I have said the words. I can die free. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>This, then, was the price. The blood cost of our freedom, and I swore upon my kinsman’s life that the Goa’uld would pay it back ten-fold. </em>
</p><p><strong>Jack O’Neill:</strong> Hey, T. Thought we lost you there for a sec. Glad that you are still in one piece. Did you…do what you had to do?</p><p><strong>Teal’c:</strong> Indeed. [Nods head]</p><p>[Things could have been different music]</p><p>THE END.</p><p>
  <span class="u">Interview</span>
</p><p><strong>Sharon Gosling: </strong>So, Chris, we just recorded First Prime. Is that the first time you’ve recorded an audiobook?</p><p><strong>Chris:</strong> Yeah. I generally…Ok, I’m not going to lie. I love hearing the sound of my own voice, but I was apprehensive. [Chuckling]</p><p><strong>Sharon:</strong> Why was that?</p><p><strong>Chris:</strong> I love doing voice over stuff, but I generally like commercial stuff. I have really been reluctant to do fully scripted things in the past. Even when I had done other jobs for cartoons or what have you, I always record on my own, and not generally, full. So I never really have to look at a full script just because of my own particular mental imbalances. To get me to sit still for an hour or so is quite unusual.</p><p><strong>Sharon:</strong> So how did you find the script?</p><p><strong>Chris:</strong> I loved it. I think that is one of the things that made it so absolutely bearable because Mr. Swallow (and I’m not making that up) [Chuckling] so got Teal’c’s voice so correctly. The dialogue was so right on the nose that I actually found it quite enjoyable.</p><p><strong>Sharon:</strong> This story takes Teal’c back a few years. It’s kind of set around season 4, season 5. He changed a lot in those last few years. Did you notice? What sort of difference is that for you to play that different Teal’c?</p><p><strong>Chris:</strong> Well, I think you hit the nail right on the head. Back in those seasons, he was still very much struggling with his past as the First Prime. As you saw through the series, he very much came to grips with that, especially once the home world was liberated and he became more part of the leadership in that and taking the Jaffa into a new direction. I really like going back to that part of his life where he still felt very guilty about things he had done in his past.</p><p><strong>Sharon:</strong> Teal’c is a character that you played for a decade, and indeed you are still playing him now with Continuum, the new movie coming up. What else is there for you yourself to learn about the character?</p><p><strong>Chris:</strong> Um, I think the hardest thing for me with Teal’c is to make sure that I didn’t age physically. [Both chuckling]. So once we figured out how to keep me looking pretty much the same for now 12 years… I think after Continuum, one of the things I would like to see explored is how this has kind of affected his relationships with his loved ones. We haven’t seen them for a while. Now that the Jaffa Nation is somewhat settled, what residual effect has that had on the many many decades of him being an absentee father, and in some respects husband, in some other respects lover (I mean however it goes), and how he will try to reestablish those OR go someplace else completely different and establish himself. I don’t know. I think it’s an interesting journey. It’s almost like, you know, when you have been enslaved for so long and then you’re free and there is nothing else to fight for, what do you do then?</p><p><strong>Sharon:</strong> Mmhmm. You mentioned earlier that you enjoyed Continuum. What was it about that movie that you really thought worked for Teal’c?</p><p><strong>Chris:</strong> Well, I just enjoyed that fact that it was a very different Teal’c, but his chief objectives and his heart were still the same. The thing he still wanted for his people was still freedom, and the fact that this story takes you a different route that Teal’c might have gone to achieve it, I thought was very very interesting.</p><p><strong>Sharon:</strong> Mmhmm. We also saw Teal’c on Atlantis in Season 4, which was a great episode. How was that? What did you think of the script? How was that experience for you?</p><p><strong>Chris:</strong> It was great fun with me. I love the kid, Momoa. To have the chance to be around for 7 or 8 days, going to their yard to play a little bit was great. Carl Binder wrote a great script. I think it’s important for the fans to know that one of the reasons that episode came about was because of the fans’ desire to see Ronon and Teal’c together. That episode was directly brought about by the fans.</p><p><strong>Sharon:</strong> Excellent. Would you do more if you were offered that?</p><p><strong>Chris:</strong> Certainly. I will be part of the Stargate pantheon as long as they’ll have me. Hopefully I’ll be too busy, but anytime I can go back and play, I will definitely do that as long as I’m able.</p><p><strong>Sharon:</strong> Well, it’s been wonderful having you here to record the script, so thank you very much.</p><p><strong>Chris:</strong> Thank you, darling.</p><p>[Closing music]</p>
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